Luke 16
16 He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. 2 And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’
3 And the manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.’ 5 So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
6 He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’
7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ 8 The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness.
For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light.
9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
10 “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. 11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?
12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
14 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him.
15 And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
16 “The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it. 17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void.
18 “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.
19 “There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.
24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’
25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ 27 And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house— 28 for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’
30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”
John 2:25
He did not need any testimony about mankind,
for he knew what was in each person.
Jesus, meek and mild. Is a myth. Jesus had ideas about heart faith and heart longing. What He wanted to see people reveal in warmth about themselves. I know a woman who lost a child
and she determined to be brave and to exhibit trust in the Lord. And all that stiff upper lip, let her down. Her friends gathered around her and told her to be more human. And they set about honoring the life of her child. All her best intentions to be a dignified Christian witness about loss, didn't go very well. She didn't live her emotions, and she didn't have enough grief to seem human to even those who love her.
I've been told in the past, my conversations were listened to, and I was found wanting. And I think they hoped to get a sermon. Yet all the Pastors in the world, will listen to music that isn't Christian. We all are merely people.
This passage is telling us Jesus is Lord. We are not. We cannot be someone's salvation. The best we can hope for is this, with the Grace of God.
Bill Hybels, Willow Creek Community Church, wrote a book called, "Walk Across the Room." Bill was challenged to not use his pulpit or his Church to bring someone to Christ. Why do we fail to live to show the Light of Jesus? According to this book, the real Christian has a relationship with the real Jesus. And without curiosity, intimacy, depth, warmth, reality we don't have the words and space to tell what Jesus is to us. The right to be heard.
Bill learned as he paid attention to bringing just one person to Christ, he had never realized that as he attended, with other parents, a soccer game - how people edged away from him. Feelings are on the line. Why did Bill have hurt feelings? There is as much judgment about Christian depth as there is in Christian avoidance.
To borrow a phrase: And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
The Cellophane doesn't fall far off the hamburger, when the Chicken tries to be brave. What's good to goose others, gooses us right back. We are all so geared to signal we are good people, we aren't comfortable to give each other room.
This is a season of struggling. We went to Austin, Texas this weekend and waited at a table, with a view, to place our order. And the view became watching the wait person carefully straighten her face from suffering, to be exuberant about the products and beverages she was serving. Her place was to create an atmosphere of fun. Something to think about. People are telling each other their lives, if we pay attention. I saw this everywhere we went this weekend. And some of this is about an inch deep show of show showy without depth. It is an odd season in life.
What we want, to find someone we respect to listen to us and give us an opinion we want.
Jesus didn't do this. And in this space, we don't find Jesus has His elbows out to give us an incredible black eye of superiority. Instead, Jesus is trying to expand goodness by identifying what is dark and escape. Jesus has a rough job. But how would we know what Jesus thinks unless Jesus is Honest. Goodness belongs to God.
This is where I want to march. I want Jesus to be honest, and then I intend to think and do what pleases Jesus. Why. People have variations. If depth is there, the relationship continues. Jesus is yesterday, today and tomorrow. A Hope and a Future.
Jesus is the way, the truth and the Life. Let there be Light.
Jesus is the same, yesterday, today and tomorrow!
Luke 1
Go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Let there be Light.
Genesis 1:4
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
Genesis 1:18
And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.
When we need the Lord. His Steadfast Love.
2 Samuel 22:29
For thou art my lamp, O Lord: and the Lord will lighten my darkness.
Psalm 18:28
For thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness.
God, our Father, will never leave or forsake us.
Job 3:4
Let that day be darkness; let not God regard it from above,
neither let the light shine upon it.
Borrowing a phrase ~
And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.
2 Timothy 2:22
So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.
Job 10:22
A land of darkness, as darkness itself; and of the shadow of death, without any order, and where the light is as darkness.
Surely, this man is the Son of God!
Job 12:22
He discovereth deep things out of darkness, and bringeth out to light
the shadow of death.
Jesus isn't giving comfort all the time, Jesus gives teaching. And then Jesus gives meaningful
discernment and Comfort!
Psalm 112:4
Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
Romans 13:12
The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light
Consider how many Chapters of the Gospel, Jesus is bringing profound Life changing Joy.
God of Love. God of encouragement. God of Salvation. God of Eternity. God does not need us to be weak, when God upholds the universe with the Power of His Word.
Ephesians 4:32
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another,
as God in Christ forgave you.
Mark 6:34
When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd.
And he began to teach them many things.
Abba, Father,
Japan has massive knife murders.
U.K. has seen an incredibly increasing number of knife murders.
We saw Buffalo, NY have murder, calling it race.
California murders.
We have to take the cellophane off the misery wall.
We desire for a meaningful life.
And then we do not provide our mouths' room to have
this meaningful life.
We offer instead petty judgments
offerings of false piety.
And in this fear of being seen as imperfect
we can't have anyone see us as flawed.
Help us Jesus
to live the Way, Truth and The Life.
We need honesty and not control
Favor and not mush
Help and not false leadership
Help us find the Path Again
in Jesus Christ.
Dwell in us.
Dwell in those we Love.
Abba, Please Dwell in those
we pray for.
In Your Love we will seek You first
and finish well in Jesus.
For all those who have suffered
and all those who hope in Prayers.
Jesus Blessings.
Alleluia Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Jesus
Abba, Father,
In Jesus Christ, we will never give up.
Jesus the God of ALL.
Jesus, we pray Life and healing
Joy and Love in all of us.
Jesus, God of Encouragement.
Jesus, Hope and Future.
Jesus the Lord
saves the world
Amen.
♔ LORD JESUS SAVES †
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